Q: I was charged with d w i. February 23 2019. I have entered a plea of not guilty in district court court has been put off
How does the statute of limitations work if I haven't been to court
A: A statute of limitations would not apply to your situation if by statute of limitations you think the state has a limited amount of time to prosecute you. Basically, it is not unusual for DWI cases to take around a year to resolve. Also, if you think you have a right to a speedy trial or a trial by jury because it is in the US Constitution, think again because the reality of it is - you really don't, regardless of your rights. The way North Carolina gets around the Constitutional requirement is once they are done screwing with you in District Court - you can get a trial de novo (fresh from the start) in Superior Court with a jury and all the trimmings just as promised in the Constitution (still likely won't be speedy though). So no harm, no foul - right? Of course, most people are broke and ready to enter a plea by the time things Shawshank their way to Superior Court. In essence, doing things this way saves the taxpayers (or more in reality - the politicians) of North Carolina a crap ton of money basically at the expense of your Constitutional rights and things were quite purposely designed to do just that - welcome to good 'ol boy North Carolina.
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